Norman Osborn (Earth-616)
the Goblin, the Goblin Lord, Overlord, Gobby, Scrier, Commander Osborn, Director Osborn, Iron Patriot, Super-Adaptoid, Goblin King, Octo-Goblin, Goblin Kingpin of Crime, Hobgoblin, Mason Banks, Great and Terrible , Green Goblin | Identity = No Dual | Affiliation = Ally of War Goblins, formerly , , Leader of the , , leader of the , , ; Former leader of the , , partner of Mendell Stromm, Crime Master, Doctor Octopus, employer of the , , Corrections Spider-Man 2004 corrections , (leader/P.R. teacher) , , Executives Club , leader of the Lucky Lobo gang ; former partner of Crime-Master | Relatives = Alton Osborn, Sr. (paternal great-grandfather, deceased); Alton Osborn, Jr. (paternal grandfather, deceased); Amberson "Ambrose" Osborn (father, deceased); Unnamed mother (deceased); Emily Osborn (wife, deceased); Harry Layman (son); Gabriel Stacy (son); Sarah Stacy (daughter); Liz Allan (ex-daughter-in-law); Normie Osborn (grandson); Stanley Osborn (grandson) | Universe = Earth-616 | BaseOfOperations = Goblin Underground, abandoned subway under New York City, New York; formerly Oscorp Tower, Manhattan, New York City, New York; H.A.M.M.E.R. base, Avengers Tower, Manhattan, New York City, New York; Thunderbolts Mountain, Coyote Springs, Colorado | Gender = Male | Height = 5' 11" | Height2 = (at normal size) 6' 4" (armor) | Weight = 185 lbs | Weight2 = (at normal size) 385 lbs (armor) | Eyes = Green | Eyes2 = formerly Blue | Hair = Reddish-brown | UnusualFeatures = Huge scar in the middle of his chest, which he gained after he was impaled by his own glider; Facial features modified by plastic surgery | CharRef = | Citizenship = American | MaritalStatus = Widowed | Occupation = Arms dealer, professional criminal mastermind; formerly Alchemax Executive, director of H.A.M.M.E.R., C.S.A. official, prisoner, adventurer, businessman, owner and president of Osborn Industries and Oscorp, government-appointed director of the Thunderbolts, owner of the Daily Bugle, Initiative P.R. teacher, crimelord | Education = College graduate (science major, fifth year degree) | Origin = Accidentally exposed to a chemical formula that increases strength and intelligence, Norman Osborn became the Green Goblin as well as criminally insane. | PlaceOfBirth = Hartford, Connecticut | Creators = Stan Lee; Steve Ditko | First = | Quotation = Secret Subway line, Underground Kingdom... so theatrical. And pointless. What was I thinking? The strength and healing powers of the Goblin Serum are gone from my system... but for the first time in ages, so too is the madness. I won. I got exactly what I wanted. Alchemax has been secured for my heir and my legacy. And next time? I'll return with a new plan... and a new face. All these years, Spider-Man and his kind have dealt with a giggling lunatic. A madman. You've never faced the real Norman Osborn, a man with all his wits about him. Poor fools. Next time you'll never see me coming. | Speaker = Norman Osborn | QuoteSource = Superior Spider-Man Vol 1 31 | HistoryText = Early life As a child, Norman Osborn became obsessed with gaining wealth and power. His father, a failed business inventor who claimed that he was swindled out of his inventions and personal fortune, took out his rage on Norman. Norman would not allow himself to become a failure like his father, he realized that he could not depend on him for financial security, thus began working after school. Norman studied chemistry and electrical engineering in college, and also took a number of courses in business administration. One of his teachers was Professor Mendel Stromm. They became good friends and later formed a business partnership. Since Norman put up the bulk of the financing, they called their company Osborn Chemical (Oscorp). He married his college love interest and they had their son Harold "Harry" Osborn. Unfortunately, his wife became ill. After she died, he buried himself in his work and rarely had time for young Harry. As the co-owner of Oscorp, Norman Osborn, loving wealth and power, decided to take full control and had his business partner Mendell Stromm arrested after he discovered he was committing embezzlement, granting Norman complete control over the company; making him the official CEO of Oscorp. While going through Stromm's notes, he found a secret formula that would make him superhumanly powerful. However, his son, Harry, tired of always being ignored and rejected by his father, switched the chemicals in the serum, causing it to explode in his face. Later, at the hospital, Osborn found himself thinking more clearly than ever before, not knowing that he would slowly reach insanity. The Green Goblin Attempting to achieve power beyond his wildest dreams, Norman Osborn planned to become the most powerful gang-lord of all by uniting all the independent gangs under his leadership in an attempt to gain control over all of New York's crime. To prove his power and establish his reputation, he decided to choose Spider-Man as his victim of choice, and sent two criminals, the Headsman and Scorcher, after Spider-Man. The two were soundly defeated, and then Osborn decided to take matters into his own hands. Remembering a giant green goblin monster from childhood nightmares, he created a costume that resembled that monster, and he became the "Green Goblin". The Green Goblin first battled Spider-Man with the help of the Enforcers, by getting Spider-Man to participate in a movie about him. Attempting to defeat him in New Mexico, he let Spider-Man battle the Hulk, after the Green Goblin, the Enforcers, and Spider-Man accidentally stumbled upon the Hulk's stomping grounds. Escaping the Hulk, Spider-Man attempted to capture the Green Goblin, but was too exhausted to prevent his escape. Returning to New York, the Green Goblin easily hid amongst New York's vast population. Spider-Man and the Green Goblin fought a few months later at a fan club meeting for Spider-Man organized by Eugene "Flash" Thompson. However, when Spider-Man heard that his Aunt May was extremely ill, he was forced to retreat, giving him a sour reputation by most of New York's citizens, including several superheroes, super-villains, citizens, and, of course, J. Jonah Jameson, and giving the Green Goblin an impressive reputation. Later still, the Green Goblin pretended to be helping the police by attempting to capture Lucky Lobo, a big gang leader, and, after seeing defeat by Spider-Man, attempted a partnership with the Crime-Master, which again ended in defeat. With constant defeat, the Green Goblin became more determined. In time, Osborn became obsessed with Spider-Man and began directing all of his efforts to find a way to defeat his web-swinging adversary. And he did. The Green Goblin managed to discover Spider-Man's secret identity, by utilizing a false gang that sprayed Spider-Man with a gas that nullified his spider-sense, allowing the Green Goblin to follow him without being detected. Capturing Spider-Man with ease, he brought him to his hideout and revealed himself to be Norman Osborn, the father of Peter Parker's friend. After revealing his past, he let Spider-Man escape, so as to prove his superiority. Spider-Man managed to defeat the Goblin by sending him into a bunch of disconnected, high-voltage wires that were drenched in chemicals. Gaining amnesia, Osborn lost all memory up to the years that his son was in high school. Spider-Man, content in this knowledge, burned the Green Goblin's costume, hoping never to see him again. Separate Entity Probably thanks to the chemicals, the Green Goblin became a separate entity in Norman Osborn's brain. Norman's memories eventually returned, and the Green Goblin persona attempted to take over Norman and defeat Spider-Man once more, this time with a bomb that was filled with a gas that nullified his wall-clinging ability. Spider-Man defeated him this time by landing on his back and luring him to the hospital room of Norman's son, extremely ill from drug abuse. Snapped back to reality, Norman returned to normal. Osborn was involved in a brief affair with Gwendolyne "Gwen" Stacy which resulted in the birth of twins (Gabriel and Sarah). The twins were taken with Osborn to Europe to be raised during his sabbatical. They rapidly aged and developed superhuman strength and endurance thanks to the Goblin Formula in Norman's blood. 'Death' of the Green Goblin To torture Spider-Man, the Green Goblin kidnapped and nearly killed Gwen Stacy by throwing her off a bridge, after which Spider-Man attempted to save her with a web-line, but killed her by applying the 1100 pounds of force required to bring her to a dead stop. Filled with rage, Spider-Man savagely attacked the Green Goblin, nearly killing him. He returned to his senses at the last minute, but the Green Goblin took the opportunity to attempt one final trick by remote controlling his goblin glider to impale the wall crawler. Spider-Man was able to dodge the glider which instead impaled the Green Goblin, seemingly killing him. Legacy Harry Osborn had witnessed the final defeat of his father at the hands of Spider-Man and removed the Green Goblin costume before the authorities could arrive, thus preserving his secret identity. He even bribed the coroner so that further autopsies would show no trace of the "Goblin" formula in Norman's blood. And for many years, the world believed Osborn to be dead. Many tried to follow in the original Green Goblin's footsteps, including his first-born son Harry Osborn, therapist Barton "Bart" Hamilton, and millionaire Roderick Kingsley created his own variation on the goblin motif. Each subsequent Goblin variation were defeated and Harry eventually died as a result of exposure to an untested experimental version of the formula that had given his father his abilities. Little did anyone know that Norman Osborn was in fact alive, and devising a master plan that he hoped would ruin Spider-Man forever. The Return of Norman Osborn The same formula that had given Norman Osborn his heightened strength and intellect also gave him powerful regenerative abilities, allowing him to survive the impalement by his goblin glider. He had escaped the morgue, replacing his body with that of a drifter he had murdered (and impaled through the chest) and fled to Europe. There he joined the Cabal of Scriers, eventually moving up in their ranks and completely taking them over. After the death of Harry Osborn, whom Norman believed would prove himself in his absence, Osborn accelerated a series of plans he had formulated over the past several years. From the shadows, Osborn manipulated Empire State University Professor Miles Warren as part of a grand scheme to have Peter Parker believe he was in fact a clone and that Ben Reilly (the real clone) was the original. However, with Mary Jane Watson pregnant and the possibility of a life without Spider-Man on the horizon, Peter freely relinquished his alter-ego to Reilly. Unsatisfied with these results, Osborn returned as the Green Goblin revealing himself as the mastermind behind the entire fiasco and killed Ben who sacrificed himself to save Peter. Reilly's body disintegrated, proving that Peter was in fact the real Spider-Man all along. In addition, Osborn had his employee Alison Mongrain poison Mary Jane into an induced premature labor, kidnapping the child. Gathering of Five Osborn attended the ceremony known as the Gathering of Five. The ritual with five arcane relics, where the people are granted either immense power or they pay the ultimate price. These relics, when brought together and the ritual performed, allow the five who posses them to be blessed or cursed with: power, knowledge, immortality, insanity and death. But the catch is that these powers doesn't seem what they are at first: what first seemed madness was in fact knowledge, what seemed power was madness and death seemed like immortality. Morris Maxwell received "Knowledge", Cassandra Webb received immortality and Mattie Franklin was granted the gift of power and Greg Herd received "Death". Osborn however received "Insanity" Identity Revealed and Imprisonment Norman Osborn's next grand scheme was to make Spider-Man his heir, first drugging him into wearing the Green Goblin costume and then attacking his friends. After days of physical and mental torture at the Osborn Estate, Peter Parker nearly gave in, but refused at the last minute. Next, the Green Goblin sent a drunken Flash Thompson to drive a truck into Midtown High School, where Peter had taken a job as a teacher. The accident caused Flash brain damage, and spurred Peter into a final battle with his old enemy. Although, it seemed that in some strange way Norman wanted Peter to finish him off, Peter refused, saying he did not want to fight him anymore and declared a truce. Sometime later, he was finally revealed to the public as the Green Goblin and after an climatic battle with Spider-Man and Luke Cage that raged across Manhattan, he was finally imprisoned. However, things were far from over. From behind bars, Osborn once again masterminded a plan against Spider-Man. This time he had MacDonald "Mac" Gargan (Scorpion) kidnap Aunt May. The plan was for Spider-Man to break Osborn out of prison in exchange for his aunt's life. Peter reluctantly agreed and with the help of the Black Cat proceeded to break Osborn out, only to have twelve of his greatest enemies waiting for him on the outside. Osborn had assembled a team, which included Gargan newly bonded with the Venom symbiote. However, Mary Jane had contacted S.H.I.E.L.D., and the villains were faced with the combined might of Captain America, Iron Man, Yellowjacket, Daredevil and the Fantastic Four. During the fracas, the Green Goblin had escaped to kidnap Mary Jane Watson and took her to the George Washington Bridge in order to replay his murder of Gwen Stacy. However, a drugged Doctor Octopus intervened, attacking the Green Goblin. Spider-Man was able to save Mary Jane after a bolt of lightning sent the two villains into the river. Following some verbal clues from the Green Goblin, Peter was also able to discover where he had hidden Aunt May and rescued her as well. It was revealed that Osborn sent Peter a letter before the fight, thanking Peter for giving his life meaning and purpose, but Peter never received the letter due to moving from his residence. After the Green Goblin's take-down, Norman and Gwen's twins confronted Spider-Man. They believed Parker to be their father as well as responsible for killing their mother and abandoning them. Spider-Man told the twins the truth - Gabriel Stacy rejected Spider-Man, and accepted the Gray Goblin mantle, becoming insane in the process. After battling Spider-Man, the deranged Grey Goblin disappeared, while Sarah Stacy sought training to use her powers for good. The Green Goblin later watched in shock as Spider-Man publicly revealed his identity as Peter Parker, railing that his nemesis "broke the rules!". Peter also confirmed on TV that Osborn was the Green Goblin, and that he killed Gwen Stacy. He was then approached by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who were seeking his aid. When Osborn fled during his last jail break, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents picked him up outside of France and returned him to his jail cell under heightened security. The Green Goblin confronted and attacked Benjamin "Ben" Urich in an alley, but S.H.I.E.L.D.'s nano-machines caused him to stop, involuntarily making him collapse and foam at the mouth. The Thunderbolts Norman Osborn made a deal with a shadowy figure from the pro-registration side who gave him a serum to override the control of the nano-machines implanted by S.H.I.E.L.D.. The figure was indicated to be highly trusted by the superhero community, though whether he was a superhero himself was unspecified; Sally Floyd and Ben Urich believe it to be Tony Stark. Green Goblin attacked a group of Atlanteans in his goblin gear, killing and wounding many. Later, when an Atlantean ambassador attempted to give a speech, Norman appeared and shot him, wounding but not killing him. As he was being taken away by security, Norman said he was 'sick' and not in control of his actions. While being interrogated by two officers, Norman became increasingly agitated when they questioned who gave Norman access to the press conference and assisted in smuggling a weapon there. At first, Norman became angry, threatening to kill the two officers' families, then he became more and more afraid until a government figure interrupted the interview (assumed from Norman's comments to be the man who neutralized his nano-machines) at which point Norman begged the officers not to let him go, even promising to reveal all he knew to them. Osborn became the government appointed new director of the Thunderbolts, and was prescribed medication to stabilize his personality. He remained unbalanced, however, and prone to maniacal laughing fits. One such occurrence happened after he read a file on the Steel Spider. After Mephisto changed reality, Harry Osborn was alive once more and no one (including Norman) knew Spider-Man's secret identity. In addition to calling the Thunderbolts to New York to hunt down Spider-Man, Norman agreed to help New York mayoral candidate Randall Crowne who got into trouble when Ben Urich's newspaper Front Line revealed that he had been operating an illegal sweatshop. Norman confronted the man who took the photos: Peter Parker. Norman was unable to find a way Parker could contact Spider-Man and left him. When he later observed a fight between Venom, Anti-Venom, and Spider-Man, Norman was confronted by Menace. After a short confrontation, Menace spared him, after accusing Osborn of being a fool for devoting all his time and assets to Spider-Man's destruction. As Menace left, Norman found Peter Parker's camera and used it to reverse engineer the tracing system allowing the camera to zero on Spider-Man's chest. Norman later used the captured villain Freak to produce a counter-measure for Anti-Venom, at the same time providing Mac Gargan with a protective Scorpion battle suit that would distribute the cure throughout his body, healing the symbiote faster. However when faced with the combined might of Anti-Venom and Spider-Man, Anti-Venom fled the fight and Norman had to destroy his recent New York Headquarters after his fight with Spider-Man. However, he was still regarded as a hero within the eyes of the public. Secret Invasion Captain Marvel, revealed to be an sleeper agent of the Skrulls, attacked Thunderbolts Mountain, but he could not bring himself to kill Norman Osborn. Osborn offered him a chance to explain himself, spoke with him in private, and convinced him to leave. Following this, it became clear the Thunderbolts - due to Norman forcing the usage of Oscorp technology over Stark Industries products, the latter of which had been deactivated by Skrull agents - were the only team that could reach and defend Washington, D.C.. Norman successfully managed and directed the team, while personally joining the battle with a machine gun. During the conflict, several Skrulls shape-shifted into duplicates of Spider-Man, the sight of whom drove Norman into an apparent nervous breakdown. He gunned down every one of them, stating the slaughter to be "therapeutic" for him. After saving the capital city, Norman successfully manipulated the media to promote himself and the team as patriotic heroes, and undermined the CSA and his former business rival Tony Stark. He subsequently led the team to New York, joining the final battle. His "heroic" status was exemplified when numerous TV cameras captured his gunshot killing Skrull Queen Veranke. When the President of the United States shut down S.H.I.E.L.D. and indicted Stark, Norman was given the role of running the S.H.R.A. and the Avengers Initiative. Dark Reign Norman Osborn was seen as the Earth's greatest hero, and had been effectively granted the power to restructure the U.S. military-industrial complex to fill the gap left by S.H.I.E.L.D. Osborn secretly brought together a group of super-villains and morally-ambiguous heroes, comprised of Doctor Doom, Namor, Emma Frost, the Hood, Loki and later Taskmaster, under the name of the Cabal. Norman and his Cabal would initiate drastic changes that would tip the scales in favor of super-villainy, with Osborn promising to give them all an opportunity to reach their respective goals. To counteract the villain's inherently treacherous natures, they were threatened into compliance by the Sentry, though Namor, Emma Frost and Doctor Doom would all later leave or defect. Norman reformed S.H.I.E.L.D. into H.A.M.M.E.R., with himself as director, and former S.H.I.E.L.D. accountant Victoria Hand as deputy. Osborn had former S.H.I.E.L.D. director Tony Stark portrayed as being indirectly responsible for the Skrull Invasion. Osborn had him hunted down as a fugitive, with the intention of recovering the sole remaining copy of the S.H.R.A. database, and also to obtain the secret behind the Iron Man armor's repulsor batteries. Osborn renamed the 50-State Initiative to the Thunderbolts Initiative. With many of the previous members of the Thunderbolts folded into his new Avengers, he created a new team of Thunderbolts as his own black ops team. Led by the second Black Widow, this team's first mission was to assist Osborn in divesting himself of the bad publicity attached to the Green Goblin image. When Osborn was called to ride aboard Air Force One by the new U.S. President, he was confronted by Doc Samson who possessed footage of one of the Green Goblin's murderous rampages. However, Osborn's new Thunderbolts engineered a scenario in which Osborn appeared to save the President from a gamma-irradiated Doc Samson and a copycat Green Goblin (in actual fact, the Thunderbolt Headsman). Grateful, the President gave Osborn and H.A.M.M.E.R. his blessings. When overseeing the closure of Thunderbolts Mountain, an irate Swordsman confronted Norman about his actions. Norman seized his sword and murdered him in a psychotic tantrum. Norman then began to realize that his Green Goblin persona was starting to resurface. The Dark Avengers Norman Osborn's next order of business was setting up his new team of Avengers. He was able to recruit Sentry and Ares as well as Marvel Boy as Captain Marvel, Moonstone as Ms. Marvel, Venom as Spider-Man, Bullseye as Hawkeye and Daken as Wolverine. With the help of Ghost, Osborn was able to create his own armored suit, fusing elements of Tony Stark's Iron Man suit and Steve Rogers's Captain America's costume, naming his new super-"hero" persona the "Iron Patriot". The Dark Avengers' first mission was a response to a distress call from Doctor Doom who had been attacked in his homeland of Latveria by Morgan le Fay. Osborn and Doom linked their armors to travel back in time, killing Morgan before she could launch her assault. Osborn and the Dark Avengers would later encounter rogue Atlanteans and Molecule Man. The Void and the Green Goblin Resurgent Norman Osborn appeared initially to use his experiences of mental illness to empathize with Robert Reynolds's schizophrenia, helping to suppress the Void. However, it would gradually become apparent that Osborn was merely callously gaining Reynold's trust, so that he would more willingly acquiesce to Osborn's later requests to allow to the Void to take control. Perhaps as a result of Osborn's manipulations, the Void would eventually establish itself as the dominant persona and begin to destroy New York. Osborn was able to negotiate a deal of sorts, with Osborn promising the Void happiness if he followed his orders. Concurrent to Reynolds' deterioration, Osborn's own psyche appeared to be fracturing. He began to suffer auditory and visual hallucinations of the Green Goblin persona - some (if not all) of which were revealed to be due to Loki's sorcery. American Son Norman Osborn became the father of Lily Hollister's child. Norman wanted to turn Harry Osborn into the "American Son", a hero combining Iron Man's armor technology and Captain America's super-soldier serum. When he offered a job at H.A.M.M.E.R., Harry refused, but reconsidered later when he found out that Lily was pregnant, believing the child was his. After Harry's first day working at the Avengers Tower, he snuck into restricted areas (using Green Goblin gadgets), and found a antidote serum for Lily. Lily mocked Harry, claiming she wanted to be Menace, and confessed the child was Norman's. Harry confronted Norman who confessed his plan to have American Son die after his inception, to bring Americans around Iron Patriot. Harry used the American Son armor to fight Norman in the Iron Patriot suit. Norman insulted Harry saying that he had to breed a better child to make up for Harry's failure. Harry almost decapitated Norman but instead walked away, accepting that Norman was no longer his father, ruining his greatest plan. Utopia When riots began in San Francisco over regulation for mutants, H.A.M.M.E.R. moved in to secure the situation. Norman Osborn branded Cyclops as the instigator of the chaos and turned public opinion against him and the X-Men. He had Namor and Emma Frost assemble a team of mutants to serve as Osborn's X-Men for the riots and round up many hostile mutants to subject to the Omega Machine, a device created by Dark Beast to sap them of their powers. Cyclops negotiated with Osborn and demanded that he leave the city once he had the riots under control. However, their arguments went nowhere, so Cyclops left. In a more sinister moment, Osborn announced that he would kill Cyclops personally. Soon enough, Frost and Namor turned on Osborn, having been working for Cyclops the whole time, allowing X-Force to evacuate the captive mutants. They retreated to a rebuilt Asteroid M, christened the Utopia. Cyclops denounced Osborn and his methods on live television. Angered at this betrayal, Osborn became determined to kill his fellow Cabal members. However, his team was defeated one by one by the X-Men. Eventually, only Osborn and Sofen were left, forcing them to retreat. The List During his Dark Reign, Norman Osborn drew up a "to-do" list, consisting of solutions to major threats to his status quo, which he pursued with varying degrees of success. The Siege Of Asgard Norman Osborn viewed the presence of Asgard above Oklahoma as a threat to the American way of life. At Loki's suggestion, Osborn sought to create a scenario that would force the President of the United States to allow H.A.M.M.E.R. to invade and destroy Asgard. Osborn tasked the Hood with recruiting a team of villains that would be able to instigate the Siege. The Hood's U-Foes implicated Volstagg, an Asgardian, in the massacre of thousands of innocent spectators at a football match at Soldier Field Stadium in Chicago. With an Asgardian apparently responsible, Osborn was now able to justify his invasion. Despite Ares' initial misgivings, and without receiving official clearance from the President, Osborn led the Dark Avengers, members of the Thunderbolts Initiative and theHood's gang, and a surfeit of H.A.M.M.E.R. troops and helicarriers in an assault of Asgard. While the Void set about destroying Asgard proper, Osborn and his cronies battled with Thor, Maria Hill, Nick Fury and his Secret Warriors, the New and Young Avengers, the recently-returned Steve Rogers, and the recently-''revived'' and Extremis-free Tony Stark. Meanwhile, in the White House, appalled by Osborn's unsanctioned attack on Asgard, the President gave the order to dissolve H.A.M.M.E.R. and arrest Osborn for treason. Back in Oklahoma, Osborn encountered both Rogers and Stark. While fighting Rogers, Osborn's Iron Patriot suit by Stark's own MK IV armor. Osborn, realizing his imminent defeat, commanded the Void to destroy Asgard utterly. Before Rogers could place Osborn under arrest, the compromised Iron Patriot armor disintegrated, revealing that the stress of running H.A.M.M.E.R. had taken a grievous toll on Osborn's mental health: underneath, Osborn had been wearing a crude face-paint rendition of the Green Goblin mask. The images of Osborn's breakdown were broadcast worldwide, cementing his downfall and the end of the Dark Reign. The assembled heroes were subsequently threatened by the grotesquely malformed Void. Osborn, deranged and defiant, claimed that his sympathy and influence was all that had kept the Void under control, and that without it, the Void was unstoppable. In the ensuing battle, Osborn briefly escaped, only to be recaptured by Volstagg and Rogers. Imprisonment Once Again Norman Osborn was initially incarcerated in the Raft penitentiary, still tormented by his Green Goblin persona, whom Osborn blamed for preventing him from successfully remaking the world as he saw fit. Later, Osborn was secretly transferred to the Special Containment Center. There, he met his secret follower Father Coulmier. When his other imprisoned followers rioted in the Second Wing, he and other dangerous villains, including Ai Apaec and June Covington, broke free. Afterwords, Osborn surrendered himself to the police. Shattered Heroes Preparing to be escorted by Luke Cage in his cell, the Green Goblin persona began to harass Norman Osborn over his failure. It told him that H.A.M.M.E.R. still existed and all he needed to do was call them. As expected, H.A.M.M.E.R. agents came to spring him during the transfer. After he threatened Jessica Jones's baby, he stated "the call has been given" and caused H.A.M.M.E.R. sleeper agents to come to his aid and free him before he could be apprehended. He rejoined with H.A.M.M.E.R. which now included Superia, Madame Hydra and Gorgon. They later sent out Ultimo with the objective of acquiring Iron Man's armor, but as Ultimo was destroyed, it sent a machine to collect Wolverine's blood which then flew to a safe location, after which Osborn initiated a self-destruct on Ultimo. Osborn then recruited a new team of Dark Avengers. This new team consisted of Skaar, Trickshot, Ai Apaec (whom he fed a drug, transforming his usual monstrous body into that of a six-armed Spider-Man), Gorgon (as Wolverine), Toxic Doxie (as Scarlet Witch), Superia (as Ms. Marvel), and Ragnarok (as Thor). Osborn's Dark Avengers made their first appearance controlling a situation which had broken out in Miami. Due to the planning of Victoria Hand (who had become a double agent within the Avengers), Luke Cage's Avengers arrived late and faced the Dark Avengers. This damaged their credibility as they had not only arrived late, but attacked the people who took care of the problem. While these events transpired, Osborn also sent a hologram of himself to incite a riot at a protest outside Avengers Mansion. This egged the Avengers on to attack various H.A.M.M.E.R. bases and they were trapped by several enhanced H.A.M.M.E.R. agents (such as "Spider-Hulks", Giant-Men and Wasps). Osborn then negotiated with the President of the United States to reclaim his position as head of national security, and seized Avengers Mansion by force. When various Avengers managed to get free from H.A.M.M.E.R.'s HQ, Osborn appeared with a defeated Vision leading an army of Hand ninjas. Meanwhile, the Dark Avengers were transferring Captain America and were ambushed by Luke Cage's team. Skaar betrayed his team and aided Cage's team in defeating them, revealing he was a mole for Captain America (as was Victoria Hand, who informed the team of Cap's whereabouts earlier). After Red Hulk hit him, the Avengers realized Osborn had the powers of the Super-Adaptoid (thanks to a procedure performed by Monica Rappaccini). The Avengers tried to fight Osborn at a distance, but using Vision's phasing powers it was useless. It was with the reinforcements of Luke Cage's team that they finally managed to defeat Osborn (by everybody entering contact with him he was overloaded with power and rendered comatose) and brought into custody. H.A.M.M.E.R. disbanded, and Madame Hydra used the remaining members to reinforce Hydra. Later, after Hobgoblin returned to New York, a nurse and doctor are called to Norman's hospital room only to find him no longer in his bed. Rise of the Goblin King At some point in time, Norman Osborn underwent facial reconstruction surgery and became Alchemax's executive "Mason Banks", and started a plot to create an empire for his grandson. Gathering followers that were brutalized by the Superior Spider-Man to his cause, including Phillip "Phil" Urich and Menace, the Green Goblin gradually amassed an army in the underground sewers of New York. Thanks to Superior Spider-Man focusing on the larger picture, the Green Goblin was effectively able to own over half of New York's organized crime, and he made sure to stamp his authority by wiping out those against him. After kidnapping Carlie Cooper, the Green Goblin soon learned that Otto Octavius's mind is now in Spider-Man's body. He entered in a conflict with the Hobgoblin and defeated the impostor. When Otto refused his offer of a partnership, the Green Goblin ordered that everything Otto cherished was to be destroyed, and those close to him be captured, beginning his full scale attack in New York city. His subordinate Menace was able to kidnap Anna Maria Marconi, which the Green Goblin used as a hostage. Ultimately, his plans failed when he did not count on Otto sacrificing himself so that the original Spider-Man could regain control of his body. He was caught unaware when confronted by Spider-Man and attempted to flee. After an epic duel, Spider-Man unmasked the Green Goblin and injected him with the Goblin Serum antidote, effectively depowering him. However, he managed to escape captivity thanks to Liz Allan's interference. Adding to this was for the first time in years, Norman was now completely sane. The Final Incursion As Earth-616 was coming to its end in the final incursion, Kingpin sent out an invitation for some of the villains he had associated with in his days to join him in a bar to watch the world end. Norman was one of those in attendance. Their revelries were interrupted by the Punisher, who was hoping to kill as many villains he could before the world ended. Return Following the restoration of the universe , Norman returned to his criminal ways. He met with General Mwenye, the dictator of the African nation of Nadua, offering him Goblin weapons to prevent Parker Industries from offering Nadua's people free energy, which would weaken Mwenye's control over the nation. Norman apparently had plastic surgery done to hide his identity as his face was covered in bandages. When Mwenye asked Norman if his Goblin weapons were a match for the technology of Parker Industries, Norman assured him that they were. Equipped with Goblin weapons, Mwenye's soldiers dubbed "War Goblins" attacked a Naduan village that Parker Industries was trying to provide solar power. Spider-Man fought them off, but the village's leader, Mr. Okiro, was so afraid that he contacted Norman Osborn and asked for weapons to defend the village with, unaware that Norman was the one who provided the weapons to the War Goblins. | Powers = Norman Osborn possesses no superhuman abilities as Spider-Man injected him with an antidote for the Goblin Formula which had given Osborn superhuman powers, powers way beyond that of natural limits, surpassing logic. They are thoroughly detailed below. *'Superhuman Speed': Norman, thanks to the Goblin formula, can run and operate at superhuman speeds. His overall body equilibrium is also heightened although he is not nearly as fast as speedsters. For example, with his speed, he can outrun vehicles. *'Superhuman Stamina': Norman, thanks to the Goblin formula, can operate or maintain his movements for prolonged periods of time without getting tired or weary in the process. *'Superhuman Durability': The formula also fortified all of Osborn's bodily tissues, making them far tougher and more resistant to injury than normal humans. While Osborn can be injured by something along the lines of a knife or small conventional bullets composed of conventional material, he is very resistant to great impact forces and blunt trauma. He can withstand powerful impacts, such as falling from several stories or being repeatedly struck by a superhuman enemy, that would severely injure or kill a normal human with little to no injury to himself. *'Regenerative Healing Factor': If Osborn does sustain injury, his body's increased metabolism allows him to heal damaged tissue much faster and more extensively than a normal human is capable of. While not nearly as efficient as the healing powers possessed by Wolverine, he can heal from injuries that would prove lethal to an ordinary human. For example, Osborn survived being impaled by his Goblin Glider and made a full recovery with only a scar left on his chest. He also recovered from having over a dozen of his bombs explode while webbed to his chest. *'Superhuman Agility': The Goblin's agility, balance, and bodily coordination are enhanced to levels beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete. *'Superhuman Reflexes': His reflexes are similarly enhanced and are superior to those of the finest human athlete. * Power Mimicry: As the Super-Adaptoid, Osborn can copy the powers, of any super powered who he manages to touch. However, unlike other super adaptoids he can not duplicate weapons and appearances, leaving only the powers. Given the opportunity, it can copy up to eight different beings at one time. If he touches too many super-humans, he would overpower and stay in a coma. His abilities given to him via the Super-Adaptoid are so powerful, he can absorb Thor's godly abilities as well as copy many others at the same time. }} | Abilities = Genius Level Intellect: Even before consuming the Goblin Formula, Norman was extremely smart and intelligent, was extremely skilled with mathematics and science, possessing an immense knowledge of chemistry and the side-effects of drugs on humans and animals. The Goblin Formula enhanced Osborn's mental capacities and creative talents. Aside from his physical advantages, the serum also greatly enhanced Norman's already highly above average intellect, making him a true genius capable of making progress in advanced areas of genetics, robotics, engineering, and applied chemistry that most professional scientists can scarcely comprehend. Since becoming the Goblin King, he was able to gain 52% of the New York underground without anybody noticing.. He was even able to implement the "Goblin Protocol" which blocked out the presence of anyone with a Goblin mask or symbol into Spider-Man's systems meaning he is an expert hacker because those systems were created by both Otto and and child prodigy Uatu Jackson. Goblin also re-powered an abandoned subway line while having it avoid other trains. Expert Marksman: As the Green Goblin, Norman uses various hand-held throwing weapons such as explosives and razor projectiles which he will throw with great aim rarely ever missing his target. He is also a skilled sharpshooter with various firearms. Skilled Combatant: He is a skilled unarmed combatant that is capable of using most weapons proficiently. | Strength = Norman is able to lift 10 tons under his own Goblin powers. While in the Iron Patriot armor, Norman's strength is augmented to the point where he can lift up to a hundred tons. | Weaknesses = Insanity: A downside to the increased intellect and physical capabilities afforded by the Goblin Formula, is that it was responsible for Osborn's insanity. While always mentally unstable, the formula had greatly diminished his already fragile grip on reality. His increased mental instability caused him to sometimes be extremely impulsive, not thinking before plunging into a potentially dangerous situation, making it relatively easy to lure him into a trap. Osborn also suffered from the delusion that he is invincible, claiming that "not even death could defeat him." This has caused him to fight when at a severe disadvantage, resulting in his defeat. | Equipment = * Goblin Armor: The Green Goblin's costume incorporated chain mail in the tunic, giving him further protection from high impacts, such as the punches or kicks inflicted during his battles with Spider-Man. | Transportation = *'Goblin Glider': He soon re-designed this device into an improved version that he called his "goblin glider", capable of great maneuverability and speeds of up to 90 miles per hour. It was capable of supporting about 400 pounds including Norman's weight (and far more for very brief periods of time). Top speed and a full normal load would exhaust the fuel supply in about one hour. The main microprocessor assisted manual controls were behind the head of the glider, and later modifications added voice-activated radio-linked controls integrated into the Green Goblin's mask. The goblin glider was steered primarily, however, by the weight and attitude of its rider. The Goblin's boots locked into the stirrups of the glider electromagnetically. | Weapons = *'Pumpkin Bomb': The Green Goblin created and utilized various concussive, incendiary, and other specialized explosives in his career, most in the form of miniature jack-o'lanterns. The Goblin usually carried these in a shoulder bag, nicknamed his "bag of tricks". ::*'Incendiary': The incendiary grenades ignited almost soundlessly and released enough heat to melt through a three-inch thick sheet of steel. ::*'Smoke/Gas': He also carried a variety of smoke and gas-emitting bombs, which were surrounded by a light plastic mantle that fluttered like a wraith when the bomb was thrown. Other gas bombs emitted hallucinogenic gases, and others released a specially concocted gas that could neutralize Spider-Man's spider sense for a limited period of time. *'Flying Razor Bats': The Green Goblin sometimes threw razor sharp bat shaped projectiles which could slice into or ram and impale themselves into opponents. *'Electrical Discharges': The Green Goblin's gloves were interwoven with microcircuit-conducting filaments capable of high-frequency electrical power from rechargeable power packs in both his glove cuffs and costume tunics. They had the capacity to discharge for up to five minutes of sustained fire before depleting their power supplies. *'Bag of Tricks': In addition to the common Goblin weapons, there are many others in the bag of tricks like a crescent moon boomerang, a ghost that is stronger than steel, a toad that can emit sonic blasts, and can carry many other weapons in it most of which are unrevealed. Henchmen Coleman (Earth-616) Coleman warned Director Osborn of Vin Gonzales' arrival. Fielding (Earth-616) Fielding alerted his boss that Roderick Kingsley had evidence to prove that Norman Osborn was the Green Goblin. Garvey (Osborn) (Earth-616) Garvey was knocked out by the Anti-Venom. Hawthorn (Earth-616) Agent Hawthorn was knocked out by Spider-Man. Kenneth (Earth-616) Kenneth shot Jack O'Lantern in the back. Leonard (Earth-616) Leonard helped Osborn with his new Green Goblin costume. Naylor (Earth-616) Naylor was knocked out by Spider-Man. | Notes = * The Green Goblin was #47 in Series A of the Marvel Value Stamps, published in 1974. * While being H.A.M.M.E.R. Commander, he was granted Security Level Ten and Code Clearance White. * Since becoming the Goblin King, Norman doesn't know that the man behind the Spider-Man mask is Peter Parker. * Dan Slott had denied Norman being the Goblin King. However, there were already hints that Norman was the Goblin like explicitly calling himself Norman Osborn, the Glider scar, and reacting to Hobgoblin talking about Harry. It was eventually revealed at the end that Norman was both the Goblin King and Mason Banks. * Norman's email was oz@amazinghair.net. * His murder of Gwen Stacy was one of Norman's proudest achievements. * In , when Norman dies, Peter mentioned that: " So do the Proud Men Die: Crucified, not on a cross of gold----but on a stake of humble tin.", Jesus Christ died crucified, so this is a possible reference to Norman's god Complex. * The Green Goblin was the first Marvel Super-villain to appear in a video game, The Amazing Spider-Man, in 1981. | Links = * Green Goblin (Harry Osborn) * Spider-Man (Peter Parker) * OHMU #17, August, 1987. MARVEL COMICS GROUP Recommended Readings * * * * * - First Appearance; Teamed with The Enforcers to battle Spider-Man. * * - Battled Spider-Man and the Human Torch II at a meeting of the Forest Hills Spider-Man Fan Club. * * - Cameo Appearance * * * * * * * * - First Appearance as Norman Osborn. * - Origin * - Kills Gwen Stacy * - Apparent death. }} References Category:Blue Eyes Category:Auburn Hair Category:Osborn Family Category:Millionaires Category:Goblins Category:Geniuses Category:Formerly Deceased Category:Scientists Category:Silver-Age Characters Category:Armor Users Category:Goblin Formula Category:Geneticists Category:Humans Category:H.A.M.M.E.R. Security Level Ten Category:Code Clearance White Category:Regeneration Category:Superhuman Strength Category:Superhuman Agility Category:Superhuman Stamina Category:Superhuman Reflexes Category:Insanity Category:Dissociative identity disorder Category:Psychopaths Category:Depowered Mutates Category:Depowered by Otto Octavius Category:Depowered by Peter Parker Category:Terrorists Category:Power Mimicry Category:Advanced Idea Mechanics Experiments Category:Chemists Category:Engineers Category:Inventors Category:Robotics Category:Artificially Enhanced Intelligence Category:Norman Osborn (Earth-616)/Quotes Category:Gathering of Five participants Category:Adaptoids Category:Lyman Family Category:Thrown Weapons Category:Weapons Expert Category:Businesspeople Category:Arms Dealers Category:Crimelords